Personal life

By Vasilis Kanellis

A father in a village of the 'immortal' Greek provinces commits suicide because he felt ashamed to learn that his son is not… a man, in the sense that the small conservative society in which he lived defines it.

An official life satisfaction survey for 2021 shows the Turkish nation is slightly happier than in 2020, with the elderly, women and married individuals reporting higher rates of contentment with their lives than others.

Ljubljana – Equal Opportunities Ombudsman Miha Lobnik has noted that the permanent ban on blood donations for all homosexual men is discriminatory, as they are excluded from taking part in this important philanthropic activity despite the fact that the safety of blood donations is also ensured by additional testing for viruses.

"We are the new normal." This was stated by the first transgender minister in Sweden Lina Axelsson Kilblom in 2018. She takes office a year after Belgium appointed the first deputy prime minister for transgender issues in Europe, Swedish television SVT reports.

Nova Gorica – Gostol Gopan, a Nova Gorica-based company that makes industrial ovens and equipment for large bakeries, has announced that it shipped the largest thermal oil baking oven they have ever built. It was sold to one of Europe’s largest bakeries from Hungary. This thermal oil baking oven made by Gostol Gopan is 3 metres wide, 17 metres long and 5.3 metres high.

Ljubljana – Slovenia will produce 10-15% less wine than last year, mostly due to the Dolenjska wine region being strongly affected by the spring frost. However, wine growers around the country report it has been an above-average year in terms of quality.

They feel pressured into having sex with trans women over fears of being branded ‘transphobic’

Sofia Pride in June 2016. Photo: EPA/STR

Rainbow Hub, a venue for LGBT-related events in central Sofia, was entered and vandalised by a group of around ten people on Saturday.

Activist Gloriya Filipova, who was there at the time, told local media that she was punched in the face by Boyan Rassate, who she recognised. She also said he was carrying a knife.

Banners lie on a street during a rally against violence against women marking International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women in Sofia, 25 November 2019. EPA-EFE/VASSIL DONEV

Lawyer Denitsa Ivanova, part of the NGO 'Deystvie' (Action), told BIRN the decision was "extremely disappointing". 

Is homophobia bought with money? The issue arose after a decision by Polish authorities earlier this week.

At the time, three regions in Poland voted to repeal resolutions calling themselves free of "LGBT ideology."